Mithril Mining’s 100% owned Water Canyon Fluorspar Project consists of two historically producing, high-grade fluorspar properties, the Nyco Mine and the Rainbow Prospect, covering approximately 480 total acres in eastern Nye County, Nevada. The two properties are located approximately 4.5 miles apart within the Quinn Canyon Range, with the Nyco Mine situated on U.S. Forest Service land and the Rainbow Prospect located on BLM land.
Both properties benefit from historical underground development, documented high-grade CaF2 mineralization, and significant exploration upside based on mapped structures and limited modern exploration.
The Nyco Mine comprises approximately 400 acres on U.S. Forest Service land and represents a historically producing fluorspar deposit located in the Quinn Canyon Range. The deposit was originally located around 1949, and a 400-foot adit was driven in 1951 along the hanging-wall fracture of the vein system.
Historical records indicate that approximately 1,100 tons of fluorspar ore were mined and shipped from the Nyco Mine, with material reportedly averaging approximately 50% CaF2. Ore from the Nyco Mine was transported to the Tempiute Tungsten Mine mill, located roughly 40 miles to the south, for processing.
During development of the 400-foot adit, 46 grab samples were collected, which assayed an average of 50.81CaF2, despite including dilution from andesite wall rock. A 1959 report of the property noted that clean mining of the three to four foot vein material would likely average approximately 85% CaF2, and that locally uncontaminated vein material may reach even higher grades.
Fluorspar mineralization at Nyco occurs within a medium-light gray quartz latite to andesite volcanic sequence. The deposit is interpreted as an epithermal fracture-controlled vein system, characterized by:
The 400-foot adit followed a high-grade fluorspar streak for nearly its entire length. Surface mapping identified fluorite showing along strike for nearly 1,000 feet, with surface widths locally reaching 20 to 50 feet, suggesting the underground workings intersect only a small portion of the mineralized system.
Ore developed within the 400-foot adit alone as historically estimated at approximately 15,000 tons based on a conservative three-foot mining width. The 1959 report concluded that, had cross-cuts been driven to intersect the full width of the vein system, the mineralized tonnage could reasonably increase by 270,000 tons, based on conservative assumptions of 30 feet width, 300 feet strike length, and 300 feet depth.
Additional extensions of the Nyco orebody, or the presence of parallel or stacked veins, were considered likely based on surface geology and structure interpretation.
The Rainbow Prospect lies approximately 4.5 miles west of the Nyco Mine and consists of 80 acres of unpatented lode claims on BLM land. The property was originally located in 1945, and historical records document the shipment of 200 tons of high-grade fluorspar during 1945 to 1946.
Fluorspar mineralization at the Rainbow Prospect occurs within Tertiary-age rhyolite flows and rhyolite dikes, histed in steeply dipping shear zones. The geology is characterized by:
Individual vein and shear-zone grades vary significantly, with reported values ranging from:
Historical mapping, trenching, and drilling confirmed that fluorite mineralization at the Rainbow Prospect exhibits a vertical extent in excess of 500 feet, although historical tonnage calculations conservatively utilized only the upper 100 feet of vertical depth.
Seven major fluorite veins and mineralized shear zones were identified and partially explored. Core drilling intersected fluorite mineralization at depths exceeding 100 feet, and geological interpretation suggested that the principal shear zones continue at depth beyond the limits of historical drilling.
Both the Nyco Mine and Rainbow Prospect exhibit characteristics consistent with structurally controlled, high-grade fluorspar systems that remain largely underexplored by modern methods. Key upside drivers include:
Modern exploration, including detailed surface mapping, geophysics, trenching, and diamond drilling, could materially expand the known mineralized footprint at both properties.
